A key issue in the design of supercomputers is in the design of the network that connects the multitude of computing nodes (or processors) that form the supercomputer. In the network design, it is desirable to build a network that provides a low-latency and high bandwidth connection between all processors of the supercomputer, with acceptable power and cost. A general approach in current generation supercomputers is to electrically connect as many nodes as possible, generally with a common board or backplane, and then use optical connections between these units to form the overall network.